Audi’s hopes for revenge lost in incident-packed day at the Hungaroring

Audi Sport had expected a weekend of recovery in the DTM championship tables in Budapest, but today’s red-flagged race saw the Ingolstadt-based manufacturer lose all advanced they had from qualifying to only see Mike Rockenfeller in the points in fourth place.

The race was red-flagged on lap six after several cars crashed during their pit stops due to a heavy downpour. This caused the drivers that hadn’t pitted yet, or who had just come for their obligatory pit stop, to fall to the back in the pack, losing any hope of a good result.

Rockenfeller pitted at the end of the first lap after starting from 16th on the grid. The 2013 champion was half a second away from finishing on the podium: “Race two was marked by the accidents in the pit lane. I wish everyone involved only the best. In terms of racing, it’s hard to assess. Fourth position is okay and in the end, I even came close to clinching the possible podium.”

The Team Phoenix driver is the best placed for Audi in the championship in ninth position with 34 points, 56 behind leading Timo Glock (BMW).

Audi Sport is also struggling in the manufacturers’ championship, a distant third with 105 points, 192 behind Mercedes AMG.

Audi Motorsport boss Dieter Gass hopes that the good form showed at the Hungaroring will continue in the next races, allowing the Ingolstadt-based squad to gain ground in the championship: “We were fast today as we were on Saturday, but the red flag, unfortunately, came at exactly the wrong time for us. We made progress at Budapest and I’m hoping for our form curve to continue pointing upwards in the next races too.”